Suicidal Dunfermline woman felt 'worthless' after jail threat

A SUICIDAL Dunfermline woman who was arrested after threatening to jump off a motorway bridge said her court case left her feeling “worthless”.

Kimberley Macfarlane, 24, formerly an aspiring footballer for Dunfermline Athletic Ladies, caused traffic delays and was charged with a breach of the peace in February.

Sheriff Craig McSherry admonished her but warned she could be sent to prison if there was any further offending so that the public were not “inconvenienced”.

This week Kimberley told the Press: “The story was on the front page of a national newspaper. People thought it was ridiculous.

“After being in a cell overnight, I was handcuffed to a G4S officer and brought up in front of a judge.

“I felt like a criminal and I was left for hours with just my thoughts, which is not good when you’ve just tried to commit suicide.”

The incident sparked public outrage with many expressing the view that people who try to take their own life need help, not the threat of being sent to prison.

She’s still recovering but will take part in a sponsored run round the pitch at Hampden, the home of Scottish football, after realising how much the game means to her and to give something back to those who have helped her.

Kimberley recalled: “I was the second one up in court so everyone in the public gallery was hearing what had happened.

“All I was hearing was that I was an inconvenience and thought maybe it would have been best if I’d just ended my life because I felt sorry for what I’d done.

“It made me feel worthless.”

After reading about her case a charity called Support in Sport, which normally only helps elite players, reached out to Kimberley and have been giving her free treatment since.

They provided a physio to help with her back problems and to thank them she is doing a sponsored run around the pitch at Hampden on Tuesday.

She said: “For me football has always been a massive part of my life and to have that taken away from me left a hole in my heart.

“But thanks to my physio Joanne I am building up my goal of trying to get back to playing football.

“Considering I was struggling to walk, let alone run, it meant we had a massive task on our hands.

“But amazingly she has stuck by my side and inspires me to be the best I can.

“When she heard about my love for football she gave me a goal so on December 4 I am going to be running once around Hampden football pitch!

“I know it doesn’t sound much but to me it’s amazing and is why I’m doing it sponsored.

“So really, these two charities give me hope.

“Hope for a better tomorrow. For a better future.”

The other half of the funds raised will go to Express Group Fife, a mental health group she attends who have also been a rock for Kimberley.

She explained: “They have stood by me through some of the darkest days of my life.

“I still actually haven’t had any support from the authorities.

“It’s only these charities that have helped me.”

Kimberley’s world was turned upside down in 2015 when she was captaining Dunfermline Ladies in a match and received a bang on the nose as she went to head the ball.

She needed an operation to fix it but, during her hospital stay, she developed Fowlers Syndrome, a condition that affects one in a million women who are left unable to urinate.

Previously perfectly healthy, she left hospital with a catheter and since then has had to fight extreme pain, mental health issues and other physical problems.

She jumped off a bridge in August 2016, breaking two vertebrae in her back and leaving her in a brace for three months, and tried to kill herself again in January, culminating in the court case the following month. Dunfermline Sheriff Court was told that traffic had been brought to a halt twice in successive days and road closures had to be put in place after she threatened to jump from a flyover at the M90 motorway near Kingseat.

A patient in Queen Margaret Hospital’s ward two at the time, she had been given a pass to go out and was due to be discharged the following day.

Sheriff Craig McSherry warned that if it became clear that she continued to pose risk of further offending, prison was an option.

“A custodial sentence would at least mean that the public are not being inconvenienced in this way,” he said.

Kimberley said the court case was traumatic but, looking back, she said: “In a way I’m glad now that it was in the newspapers because I got this support I need and it’s got people thinking about the justice system and people with mental health issues.

“I am still really struggling with my mental health but my hopes for the future are in football.”

If you would like to donate to Kimberley’s run visit the website https://www.gofundme.com/sponsored-run-around-hampden-football-pitch

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